Laurel man pleads guilty to five armed robberies at pharmacies in Anne Arundel County, elsewhere

By Alex Mann

amann@capgaznews.com|

Apr 05, 2019 | 8:35 AM

A Laurel man pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to five armed robberies in 2017 where he stole thousands of dollars worth of opioids from pharmacies mostly in Anne Arundel County and other jurisdictions.

Jawanza Kevin Carter, 22, robbed pharmacies in Pasadena, Annapolis, Laurel and Columbia by pointing a handgun at clerks and demanding Oxycodone, OxyContin, Percocet and Codeine, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Baltimore.

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The U.S. Attorney’s Office said in the release that Carter also tried to obstruct justice, calling his girlfriend from jail after the robberies, instructing her to dispose of a bag used in one of the robberies and coaching her through talking to police about getaway vehicles that were registered to her.

Carter’s accomplice, Arthur Raymond Prince, 20, also of Laurel, already pleaded guilty to aiding Carter in the robberies. He is slated to be sentenced in U.S. District Court April 9.

In addition to opioids, Carter and Prince stole money from the cash register or robbed the clerk, the release details.

According to the release, Carter admitted to robbing the Howard Pharmacy in Columbia, the Lorven Pharmacy in Laurel, the Pasadena Pharmacy and the Annapolis Professional Pharmacy.

Carter and Prince also stole money from the cash register and from the clerk’s purse at the Pace Wellness Pharmacy in Pasadena after realizing the clerk didn’t know where the drugs were stored, the release details.

Investigators used cell-site records to determine that Carter’s phone was in the immediate area of the pharmacy at the time of each robbery, according to the release. They also found text messages between Carter and Prince relating to one of the robberies, the release details.

Authorities also found Carter’s DNA on a shopping bag at the Howard Pharmacy and on a mask Carter wore while robbing the pharmacy in Annapolis, the release details. Investigators also found Carter’s finger prints on one of the getaway vehicles.

According to the release, Carter posted flashy purchases— a gold watch and designer sneakers — on Snapchat days and weeks after some of the robberies.

Authorities arrested Carter at his girlfriend’s house in Laurel, according to the release, and found recovered .40-caliber ammunition, a gun cleaning kit and an empty handgun case with a clip in subsequent searches.

Prince was arrested in Odenton after robbing the Annapolis Professional Pharmacy Nov. 29, 2017, the release details. Police found stolen narcotics in the area where they arrested Prince, according to the release.

The FBI’s Baltimore Field Office, the Annapolis Police Department, the Anne Arundel County Police Department, the Montgomery County Police Department, the Howard County Police Department, the Prince George’s County Police Department and the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office were involved in the investigation, according to the release.